Safety interlock switches are used in industrial settings to lock entryways or to cut machinery power unless a person takes a positive action such as pressing a button. For example, a gate can deny access to a mine shaft. The gate can automatically swing shut and lock when it is not held open by a person or object. This is a desirable feature because it denies access to the unwary and to the uninvited. Another example is that the access to a large press can be denied when the press is energized.
Gates can sag on their hinges because either the gate is too heavy or because something heavy, such as a person, hangs on the gate while it is open. Sagging gates often fail to close unless physically lifted. Sagging or misaligned gates can also be closed when an alignment mechanism compensates for the misalignment by lifting or shifting the entire gate, which can require great strength.
Current solutions require considerable force or strength for continued gate operation with the end result that misaligned gates are often left unlatched. Unlatched gates are merely inconvenient in some environments. In other environments, an unlatched gate is a safety hazard or a security breach. Systems and methods for easily latching misaligned gates are needed.